uTox

A no frills instant messenger for those who don't want to share their info

uTox is a completely free instant messenger program that prides itself on being able to free users from proprietary software. What it lacks in features it more than makes up for with simplicity and usability, making for a well-rounded messenger that does exactly what it sets out to do.

Typical of most messengers, uTox's contacts and user information are shown on the left side of the page, while chats are displayed to the right of that, listed top-down. Online and offline users alike are highlighted with colored circles. And if you're looking to video or voice chat, uTox supports that as well. In addition, you can share any number of files without any file size cap to restrict you.

Chatting is fast, responsive, and intuitive. Even the icons are very easy to figure out, to the point that it would be hard to imagine anyone installing this software and needing instructions or an FAQ. It's very intuitive to pick up and use.

Interestingly enough, uTox is not hosted on a physical server, meaning that it will never be down, and is not susceptible to hacks or attacks. Better yet, all messages are fully encrypted, so you don't have to worry about your messages being spied on. uTox is also completely free in that ads are never shown, and it never stops to ask you to 'upgrade.' It's truly free software.

Best of all, there's no registration required, aka no data mining of any kind. Simply install the program, open it up, and start adding friends via your Tox ID, which is in the settings tab. You can give yourself a screen name of your choosing (duplicates don't matter because you're still tied to your Tox ID), and you can even upload your own unique avatar.

Simply put, to find a messenger system that is not only free in every sense of the word, but also supports video and audio chats, has no file limits, has 100% uptime via serverless hosting, doesn't require you to register, and certainly doesn't pester you to link a phone number the way most others will, uTox really is a fantastic messenger system that lets you focus purely on messaging with your friends and family so that you don't have to worry about security or the infringement of your freedom and your privacy.